Peavey or cant hook?

[Tim Harrigan]

I use a cant hook for no good reason other than I managed to come by a couple for free. I noticed at NEAPFD that Carl in particular used a peavey very deliberately for tightening log chain and walking logs up a ramp to a scoot or bob sled. In what other ways do you find a peavey to be more useful than a cant hook in the woods? Are there any situations where a cant hook is a better choice?

[lancek]

It helps to ward off angery wifes after they found out you paid 1200.00 dollars for a new saw!

[Carl Russell]

ARGH Tim….that is some imagery!!!

Cant hooks are limited as a woods tool IMHO as they are designed for use on a sawmill turning cants. They really only have a one dimensional function, rolling logs/cants. They are poor pry bars.

Peaveys have tighter hooks for cutting into bark. They have the spike on the point for prying under, or between logs.

The Peavey to me is the number one tool for logging with horses. Not literally, but it is very important.

Carl

[Tim Harrigan]

OK, I have some shopping to do. I curse that cant hook every time I use it. Nothing like using the wrong tool for the job.

[Scott G]

Peavey = woods, Cant hook = mill

Peavey is as valuable a hand tool in the woods as my axe.

[Tim Harrigan]

Well, the cant hook was free, all it cost was a whole lot of extra work and aggravation.

[mitchmaine]

The pike pole was the tool of the river drivers. Nothing but a spike driven into the end of a twenty foot pole. Good for balance and pushing off but not much use in a jam or rolling logs off the bank into the river. And they would try rolling logs with a cant dog, but like you’ve heard, useless as half a pair of pliers. Like trying to drive a nail with a pulp hook. So one day (1858) this guy walks into a blacksmith shop (bangor), and says to the smith (joe peavey), drive a pike point into the end of this cant dog, or hang a cant hook on the end of this pike pole, without taking offense, he does what he was asked, his name become synonymous with the tool, and two years later he has a foundry called Bangor Edge Tool Co. and is making thousands of peaveys and peavey axes a year. By 1884 they are making 15,000 peaveys a year. At least that’s the way I heard it told. We had one stamped Maine Central Railroad, so everyone must have used them. Slickest tool ever invented.

mitch

[Carl Russell]

There’s a reason they call it a CAN(‘)T hook!!!:D

[TaylorJohnson]

LOL Carl ,
I had to laugh at what you said ” there is a reason they call it a can’t hook ” When ever I would use one around other guys I would call it a can hook . They would give me a funny look and eventually ask me why I was calling it that, I would say “cant hook just sounds to negative so when I use it I call it a can hook ” .. Taylor Johnson

[TaylorJohnson]

My Grandpa had a peavy and we knew not to touch it . I want to get a good one . I have a guy up here that finds a lot of old logging stuff and when he does he brings it to me to look at or buy. I would like him to find me a good one. Taylor Johnson

[Tim Harrigan]

Yesterday I saw a picture of several guys ramping up a huge log on to a wagon, I think they were logging in S. America. The were all using cant hooks.

[Carl Russell]

Too bad for them…. If they had a peavey they would have needed only half as many men:D

Carl

[Ira]

@TaylorJohnson 21812 wrote:

My Grandpa had a peavy and we knew not to touch it . I want to get a good one . I have a guy up here that finds a lot of old logging stuff and when he does he brings it to me to look at or buy. I would like him to find me a good one. Taylor Johnson

The best ones were made by the original “Peavy” company up in maine. don’t know if they are still in business tho.

[tirontco]

@Ira 21840 wrote:

The best ones were made by the original “Peavy” company up in maine. don’t know if they are still in business tho.

Yep, still in business. http://peaveymfg.com/

[Ira]

@tirontco 21843 wrote:

Yep, still in business. http://peaveymfg.com/

Thanks, I need a new handle for mine and all I can find is cant hook handles down here.

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